Blanked
by Salnalus
Summary: After discovering Sunny Town and its dark secret, Apple Bloom flees with zombies in hot pursuit. One of the Sunny Towners try to protect her and allow her escape. Apparently, it isn't enough. Twilight comes to the rescue, only to see poor Apple Bloom face death at the hooves of her attackers. Apple Bloom becomes one of them, and is now forced to live as one of the Blanks.
1. Ah Hate Zombies

Deep in the darkness of the Everfree Forest, a small, young earth pony filly was running for her life. She was scared out of her wits as a group of monsters chased her out of a seemingly scary town in the middle of the dark forest. To think that such monsters existed. The filly never thought that she would ever be running away from something that was believed to only be in legends and myths.

Namely, she was running away from zombies.

Nearing the only exit of Sunny Town, Apple Bloom looked ahead, and her ears perked up in relief upon seeing the entrance. Finally, she could escape from this horrible nightmare come true. She didn't want to overstay her welcome any longer than she had to. However, she heard voices coming from behind her.

Screeching to a halt out of fear, she slowly turned her head back to notice two more of those monstrosities pursuing her. She recognized one of them as the fast-moving zombie that chased her just before reaching the front of the town.

"All we want is friendship," one of the zombies spoke with a raspy voice. "Don't leave, the others won't like it."

Earlier, Apple Bloom met all the ponies that lived in this tiny village. The only two ponies she knew were together, and coincidentally in this area of Sunny Town, were Roneo and Starlet, the two ponies whom she helped bring together. At least, they weren't ponies anymore.

"No! Ah ain't stayin', not with you guys!" the filly yelled in distress, backing away from the two as they approached her. The closer they stepped, they more frightened Apple Bloom became.

Just when she thought things couldn't get any worse, she heard the ground shifting behind her. She became alarmed by the sound, and turned around to face yet another zombie pony rising from the ground.

However, this one looked much different than the others. All of the zombies she had seen so far were nothing but pitch black, but this one was a very dark red color. If anything, Apple Bloom thought this one could be their leader, or perhaps the strongest one or something that made this one more special than the others. She was doomed now, but as soon as she was about to scream in horror, the new zombie spoke up.

"Fools... even in death, they do not understand. I should have protected her, but I made my choice."

"H-Her?" Apple Bloom questioned shakily. She wasn't so keen on talking to the enemy, but this one didn't seem to be after her like the others. In fact, it was looking at Roneo and Starlet.

"My daughter, Ruby." the red zombie answered, turning to the surprised filly. "The skeleton you saw in that fireplace belonged to my daughter, Ruby. The day she earned 'the mark', they killed her." Her eyes glowed fiercely upon saying 'they' with emphasis. "Because of that, this curse descended upon Sunny Town, turning us into these hideous creatures you see now."

She turned back to Roneo and Starlet, and saw three more shadows in the distance approaching, narrowing her eyes.

"This is our everlasting punishment... what we deserve."

The other three zombies stood by the other two, but one of them stepped forward. "Mitta, what are you doing? Convert her now!"

The zombie mare now known as Mitta turned to Apple Bloom, pointing a hoof backwards towards the path away from the village. "I would explain more. but there's no time. Now run. Run for your life."

"Mitta!" The zombie ahead spoke out angrily, his red eyes glowing even redder. "Convert her now!"

Mitta did not move. She stood her ground next to the cringing Apple Bloom. A small touch from Mitta's hoof alerted her, and she gulped, turning away and running for dear life.

"So you're going to protect her, but in the wrong way..." The zombie shook his head in disapproval.

"Shut your mouth, Grey Hoof. It was about time you all stopped converting innocent wanderers. This isn't right!"

Grey Hoof scoffed, rolling his eyes, which would've been noticeable if they had pupils. "It doesn't matter. The others will see to it that she'll be converted, and then she'll be protected, forever!"

"No!" Mitta yelled with a hoof stomp. "I am not allowing another filly to be killed by the likes of you! Ruby already suffered that fate, and I had to watch... that filly will not be converted if I have anything to say about it."

"But you don't have control over the nightmares and bonefiends. Observe."

Grey Hoof stomped a hoof on the ground while his eyes shifted from a dark red to a deep black.

"Now let's see if the filly manages to escape. We will protect her from the dangers of the outside world, especially the mark!"

Ignoring the incredible shock of seeing something so disturbing, Apple Bloom ran into the depths of the Everfree Forest, relieved that she didn't have to face those things again. But she was sure to have nightmares about them for weeks now. Once she was sure she was far enough from the entrance, she slowed to a halt to catch her breath.

"Thank... Celestia... for that red zombie..." Apple Bloom said between breaths. "Ah don't think Ah would've made it out alive if it weren't for her. Guess they all ain't so bad after all."

She stood there, contemplating what she just said about hideous undead creatures trying to 'convert' her and offer them their 'protection'.

"On second thought, yes they are, but with one exception. Still, Ah ain't goin' back there ever again. Ah gotta get back to Twilight..."

As soon as she took one step forward, she heard moaning coming from either side of her, as well as behind her. The ground started to move around as well before more zombies rose up from the dirt. Their glowing red eyes glared at the filly, who backed away even more before tripping on a small rock, landing herself on her rump.

She groaned as she rubbed her backside, but as soon as she looked up, one of the zombies stood directly in front of her.

She screamed in terror as she looked at the detailed features, most notably the pitch black coat, parts of the zombie's skeleton protruding from its stomach area, and even its rotting teeth with a sickly tongue hanging out. It pounced forward to try and catch Apple Bloom, but she reacted quick enough to slip away from its reach.

She immediately ran away, and they chased behind. Fortunately for her, her adrenaline made her quicken the pace, making her outrun her attackers. No matter what, they still chased her, intent on making her one of them.

But those three were the least of her worries. No matter where she turned, more zombies popped up to block her path.

"Don't leave. We want to protect you," they spoke to the escaping pony.

They were slow moving compared to Apple Bloom's slightly increased speed. That still didn't help, as more kept showing up every few seconds.

"J-Just how many of these z-zombies are t-there?!" Apple Bloom stuttered between breaths as she rounded a corner, narrowly avoiding another one.

She stopped as soon as she faced a crossroad with three paths. One had to be the way she came, but one of them had a lighted trail on the ground.

"Oh, no y'all don't," Apple Bloom spat. "Ah ain't fallin' for that trap. No way, no how."

Ignoring the lighted trail, she returned her attention to the two remaining paths. She shuffled on her hooves as she looked between both, thnking hard on the decision.

"Oh, what do I choose, what do I choose?!"

Her ears perked up once more as the zombies behind her approached rapidly, their undead hooves rustling through the leaves and twigs. She shrieked as she sped toward the path on the left.

However, her bow got caught on a stray branch from one of the smaller trees. She pulled hard to try and free herself. She didn't want to be caught by the zombies, so she tried her hardest.

Just when all hope seemed lost, she broke free from the branch and ended up on the ground, her bow ripping in the process. Part of it was left hanging on the stray branch.

Apple Bloom quickly rose up from the ground and ran through, the zombies giving chase. When they all disappeared, the glow from the lighted path dimmed down, and a mysterious grey mare emerged from it.

"Where is she going...? She's going to be trapped!"

"Apple Bloom?" a lavender unicorn called out in the darkness of the Everfree Forest. "Where are you, Apple Bloom?"

Twilight Sparkle had been trotting her way through the trees, dirt and flowers, intent on finding the little earth pony filly who had been traveling with her earlier. She had finally moved away the couple of broken down trees that had been blocking their path earlier, but when she looked back at Apple Bloom to tell her the good news, she was nowhere to be found.

Since then, she made her way down the path at a breakneck speed towards Zecora's house, hoping that Apple Bloom made her way back to the foreign zebra's hut. When she found her way there, guided by a light conjured up by her magic, she immediately burst into the hut, startling the zebra who had been mixing up a potion in her giant pot.

"Twilight Sparkle! Do you want to find trouble? You and Apple Bloom must hurry home, on the double!"

"Zecora, there's no time!" Twilight breathed out in huffs. "We were about to leave when a bunch of trees blocked our path, and when I cleared them out, Apple Bloom was gone! I need your help to find her!"

Zecora's eyes widened in surprise. "You have lost the filly? I hope you are only being silly..."

"If I was joking, do you think I would be here instead of in Ponyville with Apple Bloom?"

"You must find her, and make haste! There isn't time to waste, for there is danger I am sure. Do you remember what I said earlier?"

"Something about darkness, right?"

Zecora shook her head, and looked at Twilight sternly. "Thank you for delivering what told, but you do not want to remain for the events that will unfold. Hurry back to Ponyville you two must, for the darkness this night you cannot trust."

"So she IS in danger!" Twilight yelled, much to the dismay of Zecora's ears. "I have to go find her now!"

Before the zebra could offer a rebuttal, Twilight rushed out of her hut, leaving a trail of smoke in her wake. Zecora sighed as she turned back to her mixture, a worried look on her face. "She may already be too late... Apple Bloom may have already met her fate..."

Twilight galloped through the trees, breathing heavily as she jolted her head left and right for any sign of Apple Bloom. She couldn't bear to feel responsible should anything happen to her. She already regretted bringing the young filly with her. All she did was turn her back to get rid of a few fallen trees, and suddenly she was gone. That filly was too curious.

She stopped as soon as she found two other trails near her, but something she saw made her gasp in surprise. Her horn glowed, and a small pink cloth floated over to her from one of the lower tree branches.

"Apple Bloom's bow! She must've went this way!"

She immediately made her way through the dark passage, ignoring the fatigue she was experiencing from running so much. No matter what, she was going to find Apple Bloom and bring her home. But the path was so dark compared to the earlier paths. She used her magic to conjure up another orb of light, which illuminated the area in front of her immensely.

This made it much easier to see, but didn't help lighten the situation any further. She still had to find Apple Bloom. She wasn't going to give up, even if it meant she had to spend a few hours in the dreaded Everfree Forest.

But now, that was no longer necessary. Just as she was about to call out her name, Twilight found a light coming from up ahead. Hopefully, Apple Bloom was still up there. Twilight quickly made her way toward the light only to come across a clearing blocked on all sides by trees and thick bushes. And directly in the middle of the clearing was something Twilight saw that shocked her even further.

Apple Bloom was in the direct center of the clearing, but she was surrounded by six hideous creatures that looked like nothing more than undead ponies. The young filly saw Twilight as she was cowering in fear, and reached a hoof up.

"Twilight! Help me outta here!"

Suddenly, the group of six pounced on the filly, attacking her and presumably tearing her to pieces. A loud shriek could be heard coming from the pile for a few seconds, and after a little while, it suddenly stopped. Twilight couldn't bear seeing this, and her horn glowed fiercely, and all six of the zombies floated upwards. A large beam of magic shot forward from her horn, obliterating each one into nothing.

Twilight's biggest concern now was Apple Bloom. But what she saw could possibly scar her for life. Apple Bloom was lying on the ground, but she had massive cuts all over her body, blood gushing out of every opening. Not only that, but her natural yellow coat had somehow turned into a pitch black color, even the parts that weren't bloodied. Her bow contained many rips and tears, but was not completely torn apart.

"A-Apple Bloom... I was too late..."

Tears started to form in Twilight's eyes, knowing that this was all her fault. Her heart ached in emotional pain from seeing one of her best friends' little sister, dead. She laid there for what seemed like minutes. She sobbed into her hooves in front of the now dead Apple Bloom, part of her hating herself for allowing the filly to follow her into the Everfree Forest. How would Ponyville handle the news, or the rest of the Cutie Mark Crusaders, or even the Apple Family? How would Applejack take the dreadful news?

Suddenly, the ground started to shift around Apple Bloom's body, and it started to slowly sink into the ground. Twilight lifted her head only to see part of Apple Bloom's head sticking out. "Apple Bloom...?"

She reached her hoof out, to no avail. By then, all of Apple Bloom sunk down into the ground, leaving nothing but a confused and scared Twilight Sparkle in the middle of the clearing.

A smile curled up on Grey Hoof's repulsive face. "They have done it."

Mitta raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Who's they? And what are you talking about?"

"The nightmares and bonefiends. They captured the filly and have successfully converted her themselves."

Mitta gasped in shock, but the other Sunny Towners had evil grins upon their faces. They now had another addition to their small town.

"T-That can't be true! She had to have escaped!" Mitta retorted in anger. "I made sure she wouldn't fall by the likes of you, Grey Hoof."

"Are you sure?" Roneo spoke from behind Grey Hoof. "We can all feel when anypony joins us, or is otherwise converted. You must've felt it, too."

Mitta bared her teeth, knowing the truth stung, but was too afraid to admit it. As one of the zombies herself, she could feel when somepony has turned into one of them. There was no doubt in her mind that the young filly she saved turned out to be caught anyway.

Two more zombies approached from behind the group, evil grins on their faces as well. "The filly was captured?" one of them questioned.

"Yes, Gladstone. She's one of us now. Mitta tried to help her escape, but all was in vain."

"How fortunate for Sunny Town to have another addition," the one next to Gladstone added. "And a filly at that. Reminds me of those hundred years back when we got rid of the marked one..."

"Shut up, Three Leaf!" Mitta yelled in frustration, and tears began to form from the memory of Sunny Town's cursed dark origin. However, what were her tears was actually blood streaming down her dark crimson cheeks.

"That filly was my daughter. All she did was find her true purpose in life, what gave her life meaning... and like the monsters you all are now, you murdered her!"

"We had to, Mitta! That mark she received was a curse, and you know that!"

"It was no curse! What happened before with our great grandparents was nothing more than a mere illness. It could've been cured. They also believed it was contagious."

"Which it was..."

Mitta stomped a hoof in anger, glaring at Grey Hoof with malicious intent. "Silence! It wasn't contagious. But since they believed it was due to some of the ponies getting it all at once, even though it was nothing more than a mere coincidence, they left Sunny Town to fend for themselves. They were never heard from again."

"Save your breath, Mitta. We heard that lie of a story over a hundred times. None of that is true. The mark is a curse, and we had to get rid of her, or else she could've spread it to all of us, even you. We could've let her go out into the forest, but you didn't want to let her leave."

"She was my daughter, and she was just a filly. She couldn't fend for herself in the forest!"

"That's exactly why we had to get rid of her. To get rid of the mark."

"The mark was no curse. It was actually a blessing. Look what your actions caused all of us. We're all these hideous creatures, forced to be isolated in this town, and with no true purpose. That is the real curse here."

Next to Roneo, Starlet circled her hoof beside her head to indicate Mitta's nonsense, and Roneo snickered. They all believed she didn't know what she was talking about, and Grey Hoof was going to get the last word in.

"That's enough, Mitta. We've heard it all already, and don't want to hear it anymore. In fact, you should be happy. You wanted to protect the filly. Now you can protect her... forever."

His eyes glowed a brighter red, and the dirt between him and Mitta started moving around. She wasn't startled, but she knew what was coming next. After a few seconds, Apple Bloom reappeared before all of them, but she was now a zombie. Or at least, half a zombie. Parts of her skin still had large cuts and slashes, blood gushing out and staining a lot of her now black coat.

She approached the dead filly with dread, her mind once again reminded of the murder of her daughter. She simply closed her eyes and hung her head in remorse.

"Don't feel bad, Mitta," Grey Hoof said, noting her expression. "I said you could protect her now that she's been blessed by the Blanks. But she isn't fully blessed yet."

He turned toward Roneo and Starlet. "Roneo, Starlet, take our new friend with you and finish her off. Three Leaf, take Mitta home. I think she's had enough for tonight. We'll give the filly a proper welcome to Sunny Town tomorrow morning."

Grey Hoof then turned and walked back to his house. Roneo and Starlet nodded, walking up to the deceased Apple Bloom. Starlet lifted her body and laid it atop Roneo's back. Once they made sure she was secure on his back, they made their way to Roneo's house.

Three Leaf gave a heartfelt smile toward Mitta as she held a hoof out, but she swatted it away. "I don't want your help. Just because I'm the oldest one in Sunny Town doesn't mean I'm too old to care for myself. I'm still young. I just want to go home and cry myself to sleep."

She sulked as she turned away from Three Leaf, her undead hooves dragging on the dirt ground. She didn't want to see any of her friends for the rest of the night, if she could even call them friends anymore. She didn't want to become part of the curse that came with Sunny Town's killing of her daughter. Moreso, she didn't want her daughter to be murdered in the first place, curse or not. She felt alone, even with the others living in the small town.

And now that Apple Bloom was captured, she too would have to suffer being one of them. Mitta felt guilty about letting her get caught by the nightmares. She knew the filly couldn't stand a chance against them, and she let her go anyway. She felt responsible for not preventing the deaths of two innocent fillies now, and it was weighing down on her heart even more than earlier in the day.

Once she reached her house, she slammed the door shut, and impressively hard at that. She had a lot of strength, even as the oldest mare in the town, but that didn't matter anymore to her, though. She just slumped onto her bed and pulled up the covers.

Across the room from her was another bed, presumably the bed of her daughter. She didn't want to get rid of the only reminder of her daughter she had, even after that fateful day she was murdered. The memory never left her mind. And as she was staring at it, she could hear the sounds of Roneo and Starlet finishing off Apple Bloom's transformation in the other house. She had enough for the day, and simply closed her eyes, blood tears staining her pillow.


	2. Crouching Twilight, Hidden Apple

It was still dark out. The moon shined brightly in the sky, but the view of it was covered by the thick trees of the dark Everfree Forest. Fortunately for Twilight Sparkle, she made it out without running into trouble.

However, she still had trouble to deal with. She entered the dangerous forest with Apple Bloom, but came back without her. The horrible sight Twilight witnessed back in that clearing may have been the most terrifying thing she had ever witnessed in all her life.

"Poor Apple Bloom... why did I give in to her pleading? Why did I let her follow me into the Everfree Forest when I know how dangerous it is to a filly like her?"

At the last thought, she shuddered at the terrifying memory. "Why did I leave her to be mauled by those zombies...? How could I be so careless?"

No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't shake the tears that were emerging from her eyes. She knew that this was all her fault.

"I... I can't imagine how Applejack will take the news, or even Big Macintosh or Granny Smith..." She looked ahead down the trail leading back into Ponyville. Twilight knew she had to tell them, but she wasn't looking forward to the heart-wrenchingly painful faces she knew she was going to see.

Her hooves moved shakily as she tried to move them, partly due to everything she just went through in that small time, but also from the hesitance of seeing the Apples' reactions upon giving them the tragic news. But she had to face them whether she wanted to or not.

She built up the courage to force her hooves forward, and make her way towards Ponyville, then the Apple Family home in Sweet Apple Acres. It didn't take very long, as she galloped her way there. She wasn't in any sort of rush, but after what happened, she didn't care much about her fatigue.

When she finally made it, she was somewhat surprised to see another pony in the center of the town, walking around everywhere. "Huh? Who else would be outside at this time of night?"

Twilight made her way forward to meet the pony. When she got closer, the other pony saw her and trotted toward her to meet halfway. Upon further investigation, the other pony was an orange mare with a blonde mane and tail, both wrapped in ponytails. Upon her head was a large brown hat. There was only one pony in town that fit that description.

"Twilight!" Applejack called out, finally catching up to the lavender mare. "Ah've been lookin' all over for ya! Well, not you specifically. Ah was gonna ask you earlier if ya seen Apple Bloom. It's already nighttime, and she still hasn't come home! Ah'm worried sick about her."

Twilight gulped. There Applejack was, already getting straight to the big question. It was now or never. She had to answer her.

"Well, I did see Apple Bloom earlier..."

Applejack beamed and sighed in relief. "Good heavens! Where is she?"

"Apple Bloom is... uh..."

Twilight wanted to just come out with the truth right then and there, but she was too scared. Her hesitation was preventing her from speaking, and the pause was getting a bit too dramatic. That's when Applejack raised an eyebrow, wondering what was taking so long with the answer.

"Come on, Twi. Ah ain't got all night."

"Alright, alright." Twilight breathed in through her nose, and out through her mouth to calm herself down.

"Apple Bloom... is staying with me at my library."

Way to go, Twilight. Somehow, Applejack was buying it though.

"Oh, that's it? Ah talked to Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo earlier. Apple Bloom was with them before, but they parted ways some hours ago. About an hour and a half before sundown, if Ah recall. Was she with you the whole time?"

Of course Apple Bloom was with Twilight, but she knew they were doing more than just hanging out together.

"Yes, she was. And she asked if she could stay at my place. I hope you don't mind."

"Sure Ah don't! Ah trust you completely with my little sister."

Twilight felt her heart drop from hearing that. If she was to be trusted, she definitely wouldn't lead a filly into a death trap. Not only that, but she was now lying to said filly's big sister. The guilt was building up inside her, and it was eating at her from the inside. But she figured she'd tell Applejack and the rest of the Apples the real truth after a good night's sleep.

Just before she could say her farewell, Applejack noticed wet spots under Twilight's eyes. Her mane wasn't in the best shape either.

"Sugarcube, are you alright? You don't look so good."

"What, me? I'm fine... nothing's wrong! I'm just tired from a fun afternoon with Apple Bloom! Tell you what, I'll come by Sweet Apple Acres in the morning. There are some things I want to tell you."

"Well, alright. But listen, if ya got a problem, Ah'm always here for ya."

"Thanks, Applejack." Twilight sighed in relief. She didn't have it in her to lay out the truth then and there. She figured she would wait until they were all well and rested before the news was dropped.

"Well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow then. Have a good night, Applejack."

"Good night to you too, Twilight."

Both mares waved each other off before going their separate ways. When Applejack was far enough away, Twilight looked down in distress.

"I can't believe I lied in the face of one of my best friends, especially about something so important. The Princess would be ashamed of me big time if she knew about this. I just... I didn't know what to do. I panicked!"

She stood still for a moment, looking around. Applejack was long gone by now, and nopony else was around.

"And now I'm talking to myself. I really need sleep..."

Just then, a window from one of the nearby buildings opened up, followed by a white unicorn with a sleep mask over her horn peeking her head out.

"What's with all the yelling out here? Can't a mare get some beauty sleep?"

The sudden voice startled Twilight, but when she looked up, it was only Rarity.

"Sorry, Rarity! I've just had a long, restless night. I'm going home now, so you can get back to sleep."

Rolling her eyes, Rarity slipped her head back inside and shut the window to resume her 'beauty sleep'. As if the fashionista didn't already care enough about her looks.

Without any other mishaps, Twilight made it to her home safe and sound. As she entered and closed the door, her magic flicked the lights on. The main floor of her library looked mostly clean, save for one spot on one of the bookshelves where a certain baby dragon was sleeping with his head on one of the books.

Yawning, Twilight picked up Spike with her magic and placed him on her back before turning off the light and walking up the stairs.

"Sorry, Twi..." Spike started muttering in his sleep. "But Rarity is the most beautiful... no offense, heh."

Twilight stopped in her tracks, wondering what that was about. But since the dragon was asleep, and she was deadly tired, she didn't bother to question it and kept walking. She opened the door to her private study, which also doubled as the bedroom. Using her magic one last time, she placed Spike in his little bed beside her own bed and tucked him in comfortably.

She then climbed onto her bed. For a few seconds, she was staring at the ceiling, recollecting the memories of the past moments. Twilight was now wondering how she was going to explain Apple Bloom's disappearance, how she followed Twilight into the Everfree, how Twilight turned her back for one second and she was gone, and how she spent time looking for her only to witness a few zombies maim her to death.

And all after Applejack was fed a lie, making it seem like everything was completely fine when it was the total opposite. All of the guilt was killing her inside.

"I can't deal with this anymore. First thing tomorrow morning, I am going to Sweet Apple Acres, and I'm going to tell them everything that happened. But I need sleep first..."

She made one final yawn before closing her eyes, and she finally drifted off to sleep. But her fears weren't over yet.

Back in Sunny Town, all of the zombies were pretty excited. After all these years, they finally caught a young pony. Not one of them seemed upset at the slightest. At least, all but Mitta, who cried herself to sleep at her failure to yet again protect another filly from certain doom.

In Roneo's house, said filly rested upon a makeshift bed made from leftover blankets and a spare pillow. There laid Apple Bloom, but she was no longer the young earth pony she used to be.

Though the large cuts on her body were patched up and no longer open, she still looked far from normal again. Her coat turned a sickly light black color, and her bow was tattered with slight rips and a few holes. What probably looked like the most repulsive feature were the sharp teeth that somehow replaced her normal ones that could be seen whenever her mouth was open. Unlike the other zombies' teeth, they were somewhat smaller in comparison.

Standing beside the bed was Roneo and Starlet, looking down upon the newly zombified filly in happiness.

"Starlet, my dear, we have done it!" Roneo stated in a triumphant manner, swinging an arm around his marefriend.

Starlet smiled as well, leaning her head against his neck. "We have. The filly is one of us now. Mitta tried to protect her. Now Mitta can protect her, forever."

Apple Bloom stirred around a bit, life returning to her body. First, one of her ears twitched upon hearing their voices. Then a light moaning sound came from her mouth, followed by the tightening of her eyelids. They opened a bit while her head rose a few inches above the pillow.

"Huh... wh-where am I...?"

She tried to look around, but her vision was heavily blurred. Her head felt heavy as well, and she couldn't feel her hooves. Before she could speak again, she fell unconscious once more, and Roneo and Starlet frowned.

"Oh right, newly-formed Blanks need hours of rest first," Starlet remembered.

"That's alright. Grey Hoof said we can give her a warm welcome to Sunny Town in the morning. She'll fit in _real_ nicely."

"If you say so..."

They watched as Apple Bloom quickly drifted back off to sleep.

Surprisingly, sleep wasn't much different than it was when Apple Bloom was her normal self. She still felt comfortable sleeping on the blankets like she did back at her home in Sweet Apple Acres. The only difference is that her mattress was made out of blankets, but they were still comfortable nonetheless.

She didn't have problems sleeping despite the horrors she witnessed and even experienced that could've manifested into nightmares, so she slept comfortably all through the night for the whole eight hours or so.

Even without the light from outside coming up yet, Apple Bloom woke up just as easily, now having all her rest. The young filly rubbed her eyes as she sat up and jumped off her 'bed'. She looked around with squinted eyes, trying to gain familiarity with the room around her, but nothing looked the same as she remembered it.

"Did my room move around? Ah probably had a worse nightmare than Ah thought and Ah'm seein' things..."

She rubbed her eyes again to get rid of the weird hallucinations, but after checking again, they were still the same.

"Nope, they're still there... now Ah know somethin's up."

She raised an eyebrow in suspicion before she looked around once more and spotted a large mirror placed against the wall in one corner of the room.

Apple Bloom figured she may have looked dreadfully tired, and walked up to the mirror to check. Her eye twitched at the image she saw before her. She still resembled a zombie, but she didn't recognize it those few hours ago because she was asleep. Seeing it now made her freak out.

"W-What happened to me?! Why do Ah look like this?! Am Ah still havin' a nightmare?!"

She took the time to look closely at her features, even though she was utterly disgusted by them. Her coat was all black, her mane and tail looked ruffled and pale, and her eyes glowed red.

"I-Is this me... as one of them zombies?" She touched a hoof to the mirror, and as she saw her reflection match her movements and looked at her own black hoof, she gasped at the revelation.

"It wasn't a nightmare after all... Ah really am a zombie!"

The only thing Apple Bloom thought to do at this point was run around the room and scream her lungs out. She was terrified of the situation she was in, and even though it was nighttime, she didn't care if she woke anypony else up. As far as she was concerned, there probably wasn't anypony else where she was.

As soon as a realization hit her, she skidded to a stop. "Wait a minute. If I'm a zombie, then does that mean..."

She turned her head toward the window. Luckily for her, there was a nearby cardboard box she could use to reach up to it. After walking to the box and pushing it under the window, she proceeded to climb on top of it. It was a bit difficult to do though, considering her slightly new body, but she quickly managed to climb on top.

Peeking her head out the window, she saw broken down buildings, destroyed plants, broken fences, and the trees still gave off a creepy vibe like they did earlier. It looked just like it did right after Apple Bloom saw that skeleton in the fireplace.

"Ah'm still here… so they did get me! This isn't a dream, it's real! Ah'm still in Sunny Town, which ain't so sunny after all…"

She jumped off the box and landed on the floor with a hard thump. Her head was buried in her hooves as she quietly sobbed to herself. Just then, light poured in through the window, heading towards the crying filly. As soon as the light covered her whole body, her whole body started to change.

Her coat swiftly shifted from its bleak black to its natural yellow again. Her pale red mane changed once more to bright crimson. Her sharp teeth even turned back to normal pony teeth. And Apple Bloom could feel the changes, as she rose her head to see her yellow hoof once more.

"Huh? What happened? Am Ah… back to normal?"

She looked back to the window, but covered her view with one of her hooves to prevent herself from going blind by the morning sun. Her ears perked up as she heard a knock coming from behind her, and she turned her head to face it, seeing a yellow stallion with blue hair.

"Good morning, little filly! If you don't mind, now that you're awake, Grey Hoof wants to see you."

Apple Bloom raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Hey, you're that yellow pony from before. The one Ah gave a ruby to."  
"Yeah, I know. Please follow me, little filly."  
The pony turned around and exited the building, leaving the door open for Apple Bloom. She contemplated on whether or not this was a good idea, but it wasn't like she had another choice. Swallowing a lump in her throat, she scurried her way out the door, closing it on the way out.


	3. The Tour, and The Truth

Once Apple Bloom walked out of the house, she saw what appeared to be a peaceful village. She noticed that the house she emerged from was directly across from the entrance of the town. When Apple Bloom recognized the yellow pony from earlier, she also recognized where exactly she was.

"Ah can't believe it... Ah'm back in Sunny Town."

"Of course you are!" Another voice called out. When Apple Bloom looked forward, she saw a grey stallion with black hair.

Standing around him were many other ponies of different colors. Their expressions ranged from genuineness to pure happiness. But Apple Bloom kept herself wary, especially after the night she had.

The grey stallion stepped forward, nodding his head to the filly. "Good morning, little filly! I can see you're quite surprised to be here again in Sunny Town! I just know you're going to enjoy your stay here."

If anything, Apple Bloom's unsure look completely disagreed with his statement, no matter how peaceful the town or its residents looked.

"Since you'll be staying here now, it's about time you get to know Sunny Town's most important ponies! Normally, we accept all ponies as equals, but... well, allow me to explain. We'll start with introductions. I am Grey Hoof, and as I've told you before, I love to throw a good party! I am also the head of Sunny Town."

Apple Bloom didn't have it in her to say anything. She was still scared of the predicament she was currently do. Her eyes looked to the right as the yellow stallion from before stepped forward with a smile.

"Hello. You saw me already. I was the one who saw you when you woke up. In fact, you were sleeping in my house."

He chuckled as Apple Bloom looked back at the house she exited. She thought nothing of it and returned her expression to him.

"My name is Roneo. I'm glad to meet you."

He expected her to say something. When she didn't for a moment, he raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Are you a shy little filly? That's ok, we have somepony around here who knows what that's like."

He turned his head to his right toward a white mare with crimson hair. She reeled her head back a bit, but Roneo placed a hoof around her neck to calm her down.

"Don't be shy. Introduce yourself to our new friend. I'm sure she'll appreciate it."

The mare slowly nodded and stepped forward a bit. "My name's Starlet. It's, uh, nice to meet you."

"There you go, sweetie!" Roneo cheered before turning back to Apple Bloom. "She's a bit shy. But when it comes to her hooves, boy is she outgoing."

Starlet caught the meaning and turned away with a blush on her face, shuffling her hooves on the grass beneath her. Apple Bloom caught on to the meaning as well, recalling her earlier experience.

_Don't tell me she was that fast-movin' zombie... sweet Celestia, she was quick!_

One of her eyes twitched upon remembering. Luckily everypony was focused on Starlet. But they soon turned back to Apple Bloom as a slightly taller, brown stallion with yellow hair stepped forward to make his introduction.

"Greetings, young filly!" He bowed his head forward courteously before speaking again. "You may call me Gladstone. It is a fine pleasure to meet you."

To Apple Bloom, that pony sounded a lot like Canterlot ponies. The only difference is that he wasn't stuck-up, or even a unicorn.

The last of the bunch, a bright green mare with dark green hair, enthusiastically stepped forward, a large grin on her face. Seeing how this pony tried to kill her before made Apple Bloom question her eccentricity.

"And last but certainly not least, I'm Three Leaf! You know, that pony you saw waaaaay over there watering those plants yesterday? That pony! So glad to have you here in Sunny Town with us!"

"Ok, Three Leaf," Grey Hoof interrupted. "I think the little filly's had enough of an introduction."

Apple Bloom lowered her head toward the ground, a frown on her face. "Ah'm not a little filly..."

Grey Hoof turned back to her after hearing her voice. "Did you say something?"

"Ah'm no little filly. Ah'm a big girl."

Gladstone chuckled at her cuteness, and looked quite adored by the sound of her voice. "Of course you are! What may we call you?"

"My name's Apple Bloom..." she spoke hesitantly with a soft voice. It sounded a bit shaky, but then again, she wasn't exactly in a comfortable position.

"Good, then!" Grey Hoof cheered. "Apple Bloom, these guys are my closest friends. Pretty soon, you can be close to us too."

Her eyes narrowed, and she brought her head up, shooting a glare straight into Grey Hoof's eyes. "Ah don't wanna be close to y'all. You tried to kill me! And... then you _did_ kill me!"

She paused, reeling back a bit with a saddened expression. "At least, Ah think... Ah feel alive, but a few minutes ago, Ah thought Ah saw myself as a zombie."

Grey Hoof smiled, and turned his head to the left. "We'll have to discuss a few things later, but first, let's show you where we all live, just in case you ever need to find any of us. If would be so kind as to follow me..."

He walked off to his left, Gladstone and Three Leaf following behind. Once they proceeded, Apple Bloom could see the entrance to Sunny Town directly in front of her.

_My only way out. Maybe I can lose these zombies after all..._

Roneo could tell what she was thinking just by looking at her, As soon as she took a step forward, he stepped directly in front of her.

"Wrong way, Apple Bloom. Grey Hoof and the others went that way."

"Ah'm leaving this place. Ah'm not staying here with you zombies."

Roneo started to chuckle, and surprisingly, Starlet giggled a bit along with him. This just seemed to unnerve Apple Bloom as she stepped back.

"You're one of us now. You can't leave Sunny Town once you become a blank."

"A... what?"

Roneo just realized what he had said to the filly, and scratched the back of his head.

"Grey Hoof will explain later. Now come along. They're waiting for us."

Before Apple Bloom could make a counter argument, she found herself being forced away from the entrance toward the other ponies. They stood before yet another house, but it seemed a bit larger than Roneo's house.

Grey Hoof cleared his throat once the other three ponies joined them. "Now then Apple Bloom, this would be my house. If there's any sort of trouble you may seem to have concerning Sunny Town, my door is always open."

"Are you sure?" Three Leaf interrupted with a raised hoof. "I tried to open your door two days ago. It wasn't open!"

"Did you read the sign on the door? It said, 'DO NOT DISTURB'. I was busy doing something."

"Oh..." Three Leaf lowered her head in embarrassment. "I didn't read it. I can't read."

"Let's just move on, shall we?"

Out of nowhere, Three Leaf quickly returned to her cheery self while silently following Grey Hoof, followed by the others. The town looked pretty empty with the six being the only ponies around, yet Apple Bloom saw many, many more houses the first time she came through. She presumed they were the houses that belonged to the many other zombies who were chasing her the previous night. The thought of them made her shudder, but at least they didn't retain their terrifying looks, as was evident by the ponies she was now following.

They ended up near a house not that far away from Roneo's house. In fact, it was next door. "This would be Starlet's house. She likes to read a lot, so her home is filled with many books."

"Yeah," Starlet replied from behind the group. "If you want to read something from my house, I don't mind much. Just, as long as you bring them back when you're finished. That's ok, right?"

Starlet glanced over at Apple Bloom with a pleading expression as if to ask if she could be trusted. But just staring at the white mare instilled fear into the filly knowing how fast she moved. She hadn't seen anything move that fast since the last time she had seen Scootaloo performing tricks on her scooter. To know that a zombie moved with such swiftness scared her stiff. She didn't reply to Starlet, who in turn frowned when she didn't get an answer.

"Apple Bloom, why didn't you answer her?" Roneo asked, slightly disgruntled. Gladstone shook his head.

"Perhaps she is still uncomfortable around us. Do not forget, she is new here. Give her time, and she will open up."

"Well said, Gladstone," Grey Hoof commented before turning to his left and continuing forward. All of the other ponies followed afterward.

After about three more good minutes, they came across a rather fancy-looking house. While it looked just like any other house, the porch was decorated with fancy fixtures that made it a bit more unique compared to every other house they've seen yet.

"This would be Gladstone's house. While he mostly likes to keep to himself, he is an excellent conversationalist, and likes to help ponies through speech."

Gladstone nodded in acknowledgment. "Think of me as a therapist of sorts. I have once helped out Three Leaf with a problem of hers, and... well... alright, she has many problems, but I am usually the one to consult should you ever require a lending ear."

Even though that promise sounded comforting, it felt anything but to Apple Bloom.

_Ah think you wouldn't be able to help me out with any new problems Ah'm goin' to be havin' now..._

Silence filled the air once more between the group of six. It was getting awkward, to say the least. After about six seconds, Apple Bloom could feel one of her hooves being pulled by a certain green mare's hoof.

"My turn, my turn!" the ever-so-cheerful Three Leaf chimed, dashing away with Apple Bloom against the filly's will. "Come with me, and I'll show you my house!"

Apple Bloom didn't have a chance to object Three Leaf's actions, and they both left in a huff, leaving a cloud in their wake. Everypony else was rather confused about the whole ordeal.

"Well, that's weird," Roneo stated with a raised brow. "She never gets _that_ excited about showing a new pony her house."

"Well, this is a special case, I'm willing to admit," Grey Hoof answered with a cheerful smile. "This is a filly we have brought into Sunny Town. We haven't seen any young ponies since we got rid of the cursed one. So I'm willing to excuse Three Leaf's excitement. Besides, when doesn't she act this happy?"

Roneo chuckled, and nodded his head in agreement. "Good point. Let's catch up to them so Three Leaf doesn't ramble her into submission."

That may have already been too late for Apple Bloom. They were already at Three Leaf's house were the overzealous mare was rambling on and on while Apple Bloom stared at her awkwardly.

"So yeah, this is my house! I know it looks like a bunch of other houses, but it's very much different! For example, you can see my garden right here in the front, which I watch over all the time! I am also a great cook, and I love to help Grey Hoof set up his parties! Though, most of what I do is make the cake and punch and chips and other foods, but yeah! Though that's not all! I also have a back garden where I grow lots of plants and stuff! Oh and fruit trees too! Do you like apples? I'm guessing you do since your name has 'Apple' in it!"

_Dear Celestia, this mare is hyper... she could probably compete with Pinkie Pie._

"Three Leaf!" Grey Hoof yelled, which snapped Three Leaf back to reality.

"Oh, did I ramble on again? Sorry, but it's just so exciting to have a filly here!"

Grey Hoof rolled his eyes, but then turned to Apple Bloom with a smile.

"Anyway, that's all you'll have to know around here. Of course, there are lots more ponies that live here in Sunny Town, but..."

Before he continued, the other four ponies gathered to either side of him, with Roneo and Starlet to his left, and Gladstone and Three Leaf to his right. They all had genuine smiles on their faces.

"These four are my closest friends. I hope that maybe you could be a great friend of ours as well. But yes, all five of us hold a special meaning to this town."

"Wait, you forgot about Mitta!" Three Leaf alarmed with a raised hoof in the air. Grey Hoof sighed as he lowered his head.

"I was trying to avoid having her mentioned... but yes, Apple Bloom. You probably remember Mitta. I'd rather not talk about her, but..."

Grey Hoof walked past Apple Bloom a few more steps, and the little pony followed. Not that far away stood a lone house with a rather bare lawn compared to the other houses.

"That is Mitta's house. If you want, you may see her, though if I know her right, she's still crying in there about her daughter. I'm going to go set up for a party now."

Grey Hoof turned away from her, walking back to his group of friends. "It would be nice if you joined us later. After all, the party's about you joining us."

A smile curled on his lips before he walked away, as did the others. Apple Bloom didn't turn away from Mitta's house. She had a sense of wonder about not only the house itself, but the pony living inside.

She cautiously stepped forward, unsure of whether or not she should even be stepping on the property with the permission of its owner. But being a filly, Apple Bloom didn't know better to have that on her young mind. Out of the curiosity that got her into this mess in the first place, she decided to move forward.

Without a second thought, she reached up to the doorknob and slowly turned it clockwise. With a slight push, the door opened with a quiet, audible creak. She didn't even think that the homeowner may have had the door locked.

The room was very dark, save for the light pouring in from the windows, as well as the now-opened doorway. Taking Grey Hoof's hint and attempting to meet this Mitta pony, Apple Bloom entered the house and quietly closed the door shut.

Back in Ponyville, the early morning sun shined through Twilight's window. The bright rays had slowly crept toward the lavender mare's bed until it hit her eyelids. Her body was sprawled out on the bed in a rather uncomfortable position. What made her sleep even more uncomfortable was the fact that she was still wearing her saddlebag on her back.

Eventually, Twilight woke up from her slumber, her eyes feeling heavy from the somewhat lack of sleep she had experienced in the night. She didn't have a headache, but after she rose herself up from the pillow, a sense of dizziness attacked her head. It took more than a few seconds of clearing her head to regain her senses.

After rubbing her head and groaning for a good seven seconds, she tossed the covers aside and left her bed toward her mirror. Staring at her mirror, Twilight appeared to be a bit shocked, though the result wasn't surprising. Her mane was rustled to the point where it was almost poofy. Not as close as Pinkie's mane, but still rather unnatural. Her tail wasn't as rustled, but it still wasn't the same as it usually looked. Twilight even had noticeable bags under her eyes.

She yawned loudly for a brief moment before her horn glowed a magnificent magenta hue, picking up the brush on her dresser.

"Dear Celestia... I've had better nights than this. Luckily, I don't have anything planned today. I feel dead tired."

Before the brush started to streak her mane, she took a pause. "Dead... Apple Bloom..."

Just then, the mirror had swirls moving around the shape of Twilight's reflection, almost like a portal to an alternate dimension. Her eyes blinked at the strange phenomenon, and she raised a hoof to touch it, expecting her hoof to pass through. However, her hoof stopped at where it touched the swirl, and it still felt like glass.

Soon, the vision shifted to a new image, not of Twilight's reflection, but of the image Twilight had seen the night before. There was Apple Bloom, surrounded by six of those creatures, those monsters, those... zombies. Twilight's ears folded downward as she could only stare and witness them tear the little earth pony filly to shreds. One by one, they pounced forward and proceeded to make her one of them. And just like last night, it was unbearable to see.

Her heart clenched upon watching that scene unfold before her very eyes. The more they attacked her, the more it hurt inside to watch. Twilight had wanted to end the assault, but before she could prevent any permanent damage, it had already been too late.

Twilight still felt very tired, and rubbed her eyes with her hoof. Upon uncovering her eyes again, she found herself face-to-face with her reflection once more.

"What... are my eyes playing tricks on me?" she asked herself while bringing her head closer to the mirror, her reflection following suit. "I didn't want to see that again... I didn't want to be reminded of my failure back in that clearing..."

Her magic released its grip on the brush, sending it landing back down on the dresser with a loud thump. A bit of tears formed in her eyes again from the memory of the past night, and her inability to save one of her best friend's younger sister caused her much distress.

Her ears perked up rapidly upon hearing a slight groaning sound coming from behind her, and she quickly spun her head around. She made a sigh of relief when she only saw her number one assistant rise up from his bed, accompanied by a stretch of his small arms followed by a yawn. He looked up at Twilight as soon as his vision cleared.

"Twilight?" muttered a still sleepy Spike. "Is it morning already?"

Twilight sighed. Things were getting to her, so she tried to remain calm. Usually, she would try to, but things weren't usually this bad.

"Yes Spike, it's morning."

Groaning, Spike climbed out of his small bed by the foot of Twilight's much bigger bed. When he regained full control of his senses, he finally noticed Twilight's hideous wake-up look and reeled back in surprise. Twilight had expected this.

"I know, I look horrible. I could hardly sleep last night."

"I can tell. You look like a pony that recently came across zombies or something."

Twilight's right eye twitched. How exactly did he know that? Or maybe it was just a lucky guess. Either way, Twilight just giggled nervously at the small guess.

"Heh, yeah. We both know there's no such things as _zombies_..." she emphasized. Luckily, it seemed like Spike didn't catch on to the meaning of the emphasis of the word zombies, and shrugged it off.

"Well, whatever's bothering you, I'm sure it can be fixed with a nice talk. That is, if you don't mind, of course."

Twilight shook her head. She couldn't really tell him what happened, especially about Apple Bloom. She had to break the news to Applejack and the Apple Family first. "It's alright, Spike. How about you just get me a nice cup of coffee? I really could use the energy."

Spike beamed with a hand raised to his forehead, presenting a salute. "A cup of coffee, coming right up!"

With that, Spike ran out the door and down the steps. After he was out of sight, Twilight exasperated a deep breath.

"I just need time to think about how to tell them. Just, what do I say? Something like, 'Hey, umm, I went to the Everfree Forest last night, and I'm sorry to say, but Apple Bloom went with me and she got killed by zombies'?"

She facehoofed, and dragged her hoof down her face in exhaustion. "That's not going to work at all! I need to think of something quick."

Meanwhile, Spike arrived at the main floor of the library. Normally most mornings, Twilight would have Spike check something like a list, or one of the bookcases, or some other such thing. But all he was doing now was getting a cup of coffee. As he made his way across the room, a sudden knock was heard at the door.

"Huh? Who knocks this early in the morning?" Spike asked while he scratched his head. He switched route and walked to the door. When he opened it, Applejack stood there with a smile on her face.

"Howdy, Spike!" she greeted with a tip of her stetson hat. "Ah know you ain't used to seein' me here in the mornin'. Just thought Ah'd stop on by since we ain't so busy at the farm, and won't be until a few more hours. Where's Twilight?"

Spike was rather intrigued by the fact that Applejack had shown up at the library of all places, in the morning of all times. But he just shrugged it off as nothing.

"Twilight's upstairs. Come on in."

Applejack gladly stepped inside as Spike closed the door behind her. He went back to getting Twilight a cup of coffee. "I guess you just wait for her to come down, I guess."

Applejack didn't have to wait, though. As soon as she turned her head the other way, she saw Twilight walking down the stairs. Her dark blue mane and tail were fixed to the way they normally looked so as to be presentable. She had to remain calm for the Apple Family.

"Howdy, Twilight!" Applejack greeted with a wave of her hoof. The sudden voice fully woke up Twilight, who jumped in surprise, which made Applejack chuckle from the sight.

"Sorry there, Twi. Didn't mean to scare ya."

Twilight continued down the stairs uneasily, and her shock came from more than just the sudden greeting. "Applejack, why are you here so early? I mean, I know you like to get up early in the morning, but why come here? I said I was going to meet you at Sweet Apple Acres."

Twilight's plan was normally to spill the beans, figuratively of course, in front of the whole Apple Family, and that included Big Macintosh and Granny Smith. The way she planned it, she was going to walk there while coming up with a perfect way to explain everything that happened. Now, with Applejack here, she no longer had time to think.

"Yeah, Ah know that. But Ah asked Big Mac if he'd take over the farm for a bit while Ah check up on lil' Apple Bloom. Where is she?"

Twilight gulped. Applejack was known for getting straight to the point, but without even trying? Twilight didn't even mention her yet. But it was now or never.

"Listen, umm, can you come up to my room? I'd rather not have Spike close enough to hear."

Applejack raised an eyebrow. "Why not? All Ah wanna know is where my sister is."

"Just come with me," Twilight responded before she turned back and trotted back up the stairs without waiting for a rebuttal from Applejack.

"What in the hay is her deal? Something's goin' on here, and Ah'm goin' to find out what."

She narrowed her eyes as she followed Twilight up the stairs to her room. Applejack was a blunt, straight to the point mare, and when it came to the safety of her family, she was willing to up her attitude. When they reached the top of the stairs, Applejack closed the door behind her with a hind leg.

"Alright Twi, spill it," Applejack demanded bluntly, startling Twilight a bit. "Ah know somethin's up here, and Ah want answers, now."

Twilight had no escape now. It was just her and Applejack in the room, and nopony else. Twilight wanted more time to think, as she always did in situations like these. But now that her cowpony friend was here and demanding answers, she had no more time. She relaxed herself and took a deep breath, then exhaled before looking Applejack straight in her eyes. She figured she would wing it and hope for the best.

"Applejack, your sister is... gone."

Applejack's narrowed eyes let up a bit, with one of her eyebrows raised. "Gone? What do ya mean, gone? Where did she go?"

Twilight sighed. She was being too weak. There was no point in making her explanation subtle, or stalling for more thinking time. She had to explain now, whether she liked it or not.

"Ok, fine... there's no use in sugarcoating it or lying anymore. Applejack, Apple Bloom wasn't spending all day with me yesterday. She only joined me a bit late, right before sundown."

"You... lied to me? Ah'm one of your best friends, Twilight. And this is about my lil' sister!"

Twilight winced a little from the forced yelling. "Yes, I know. But I'm telling you the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth now."

"Ah'm listening..."

Twilight nodded before beginning her explanation. "I was walking toward the Everfree Forest to deliver some herbs to Zecora. By then, it was nearing sundown. Before I left Ponyville, Apple Bloom appeared, and when I told her what I was doing, she begged me about taking her with me. I just couldn't say no. We did go to Zecora's hut, and I watched her at all times to make sure she was kept safe. When we got there and I gave Zecora the herbs, she gave us a warning, something about something bad happening that night. So we left as fast as we could."

"Ah have a bad feelin' about this..." Applejack admitted, rubbing her stomach as if she felt a bit ill. Truthfully, she was just feeling worried that something bad happened to Apple Bloom.

"So we were going back the way we came, when a fallen tree mysteriously blocked our path. I wondered how it got there, and Apple Bloom thought ghosts put it there, but there aren't any such things as ghosts. I moved it out of the way with my magic only to see more fallen trees. I told her to stay put while I cleared the path, and once I did, I turned my back to see that she was gone!"

Applejack gasped in shock. "Ya mean to tell me my lil' sister is lost somewhere in the Everfree Forest, and you walked back home without a care?!"

Applejack's tone frightened Twilight, making her step back a step, probably for her own safety. She could understand why the orange mare would be furious, but she wasn't finished yet.

"Please, Applejack. I'm not finished," Twilight pleaded, calming Applejack down.

"I figured she went back to Zecora's hut, but when I returned there, she wasn't there. I told Zecora what happened, and she told me to hurry and find Apple Bloom. So I did, and I kept going until I found my way to a place with a few paths. And hanging from a tree, I saw... a torn piece of her bow."

Now, whatever anger Applejack had stored inside her was soon replaced with more worry. Her heart beat a tiny bit faster at the suspense of what was to come next.

"I ran down one of the paths, hoping to find Apple Bloom at the end while using light from my horn to guide me. But at the end of the path was a closed clearing, and what I saw terrified me... it was Apple Bloom, and she was surrounded by six zombies!"

Applejack was surprised. She was expecting Twilight to mention something fierce and dangerous like timberwolves or a manticore or some other beast, not something as make-believe as zombies.

"You're kiddin' me, right?"

"Applejack, this is serious! Apple Bloom was cornered by zombies, and they killed her!"

Applejack shook her head in disbelief. Normally, she'd appreciate a good joke, but when it was about her own little sister, or any family member for that matter, things got personal.

"Twilight, Ah can't believe you'd joke about my sister like that. You know how much Ah care about Apple Bloom."

"I'm not joking!" Twilight yelled back, but that didn't phase Applejack one bit, who narrowed her eyes once more. "How could you think I'm making this up?"

"Zombies? They ain't real. Ah used to think they were back when Ah was a filly, but Ah've grown outta that phase."

Twilight's heart was now pounding out of the situation Apple Bloom was in with her death, as well as the fact that Applejack wasn't believing a word she was saying. She had one more thing to bring forth, but it was a reminder of that fateful night; something that would definitely change Applejack's view.

"Applejack, if what I said didn't happen, how do you explain the time I was out last night? How do you explain how I looked last night? How do you explain... how I have this?"

Her horn started glowing, and a similar glow filled one of her saddlebags. When it opened up, the torn up piece of cloth she found on a tree branch during the search for Apple Bloom floated out and levitated in the air between the two mares. The sight of it was too much to bear for Twilight, as it was a reminder of her lack of responsibility to take care of Apple Bloom, including her failing to save the filly at the hooves of her attackers. The pain her heart was feeling caused tears to form in her eyes out of despair.

Applejack picked up the cloth with one of her hooves, looking down at it with melancholy. "Apple Bloom's bow... and it's torn off..."

She looked back at Twilight, who lowered her head and ears slowly. Her eyes stared back down at the cloth, tears coming to her eyes as well.

"So, what ya said is true? She really was killed by zombies?"

Twilight shook her head, unsure of how else to address the situation. "I'm really, really sorry Applejack. I should've never let Apple Bloom follow me into the Everfree Forest if I knew her curiosity was going to harm her. It's all my fault..."

Twilight didn't get an answer from Applejack. They stood in total silence for about half a minute while the orange mare took in all of the information as she stared down at the small cloth. Without a word, she slowly turned around and opened the door. Twilight opened her eyes and lifted her head as soon as she heard the door open.

"Where are you going, Applejack?"

Applejack sighed without looking back. "Ah'm gonna step outside."

Afterward, she closed the door, leaving Twilight alone. She sighed, willing to wait for her friend to return.


	4. Dark Origins

The main room inside Mitta's house was very dark, and to Apple Bloom, quite spooky. Then again, this was a lone house in a mysterious village deep within the Everfree Forest. It wasn't exactly as sunny as the name of the town implied. That was the vibe Apple Bloom felt as soon as she entered the building where she saw a pony's skeleton lying in a fireplace the day before.

All was silent as the filly walked throughout the house. The only thing she could hear were her own hoofsteps clopping quietly against the hard, wooden floor. It looked like any plain, wooden house, not counting the fact the indoors were unnaturally so dark. The expectation for something to just pop up out of nowhere sent chills up Apple Bloom's spine.

There was a creaky floorboard just in front of her, though she did not notice it due to the combination of the darkness that made it hard to see and her trying to be aware of whatever else was around her. When she stepped on it, it made a long, creaky sound, which made Apple Bloom jump and scream in fear.

Though her scream only lasted half a second, it echoed around her as if she were in a large hallway, though strangely enough, she was in an almost empty room. Based on past experiences, she thought it looked like the living room of the house, but it looked anything but living. Some of the things she noticed were framed pictures on the wall. Though the darkness made it hard to see, the light that peered through the windows provided more than enough to see what they were.

The light made it only visible enough to see two of the three frames. The first one showed a picture of the entrance of Sunny Town. In the middle of the area, seven ponies were seen posing for the camera. Five of the seven ponies were the same ones Apple Bloom met earlier, when she first arrived in Sunny Town, and only a few minutes ago. One of the other two ponies looked like the mare she saw in Roneo's house the day before, crying and saying things about something happening again and again.

But the one remaining pony, Apple Bloom did not recognize at all, and from the angle the picture was taken, it was hard to get a good look at her. However, a clearer image of that pony could be seen in the second frame, which Apple Bloom shifted her attention to. It showed the two aforementioned ponies side by side sitting in front of a house.

Both mares had grey coats, similar to Grey Hoof. One of them had dark red ruffled hair that went down to her shoulder. She looked rather young, yet somewhat older than most of the ponies she met, even Grey Hoof. Next to her was a grey filly, about two years older than Apple Bloom as far as she could tell. Her hair was more neat than the other pony's, orange with a plain yellow streak going down the middle.

The two ponies looked genuinely happy together, but Apple Bloom was anything but. These may have looked like happy memories, but the filly looking at them thought that the fact they were kept inside such a depressingly dark house told her there was something behind the meaning of the images. Apple Bloom had second thoughts about coming inside in the first place, and contemplated going back.

Before she could do so, she heard hoofsteps coming from the doorway she entered the room from. This alarmed her, and so she scrambled for the door on the opposite of the room. She managed to open it as she saw a hoof out of the corner of her eye. She let out a loud scream before hightailing it out of the room.

As soon as she left the room, she ran through the hallway to her left, which wasn't as dark as the rest of the house, but not exactly light either. To her left, she spotted the door out of the house. She bolted straight for it, her small heart beating rapidly from the fright of being chased. But right before she could reach it, the dark figure from before stepped in through an adjacent doorway, blocking access to it. That was the only chance Apple Bloom had at escape, and this pony was blocking it.

"S-Stay away from me!" she cried, backing away while the pony stepped forward. With the way its eyes were looking, it looked like it was haunting the filly with the intent to kill. After hearing Apple Bloom's voice, the figure stopped in its tracks. Apple Bloom was confused as to why it didn't keep walking toward her, but she was still more frightened than surprised.

"You're the filly... the new one that has been forced to join Sunny Town."

Apple Bloom gulped, shivering in place while staring at the pony, who she could now confirm was a mare by her voice. She would speak if the mare weren't intimidating her with the creepy atmosphere and mood.

"If you're wondering who I am, think about the only pony you haven't formally met yet. Besides, I am the one who _really_ tried to protect you, unlike Grey Hoof..."

Apple Bloom didn't know what she meant by that, until she started to think hard. Putting what Grey Hoof said about this house earlier, plus the fact that she met every pony in Sunny Town, except one. Then it came to her.

"Y-You're Mitta...? The one who tried to save me?" Apple Bloom's voice was shaky when she muttered those words, but the mare knew better than to scare the filly any further. She nodded without a word, and Apple Bloom stopped shivering.

"Yes, I'm Mitta. I was the one to let you escape Sunny Town when Grey Hoof and the others tried to chase you. Unfortunately, you didn't make it, and they converted you anyway. That makes you the second filly to suffer such a horrible fate..."

Mitta hung her head in sorrow, causing Apple Bloom to lift her own head in wonder. She seemed less frightened now, though the dark atmosphere still made things not very comfortable. She figured it was safe to move forward, so she did, seeing as Mitta was friendly, unlike the others. At least, she was friendly in Apple Bloom's sense of the word.

"S-Second filly? Was there somepony else?"  
Mitta sighed, and walked forward Apple Bloom before walking past her. "Follow me. It is only fair that I show you, as well as give you information about this place."  
Being the naive filly she was, Apple Bloom followed the older mare, unsure of where this was going. She had no idea what else to do, and if this was the mare that tried to save her, it was much better being with her than with Grey Hoof and the others that actually tried to kill her the other night.  
After about a minute or two of walking, the pair ended up in a moderately-sized room. It was filled with a single window on the wall opposite the door, a bed on both side walls, and a chest past the foot of the bed on the left. Unlike the other ninety percent of the house, this room actually had a good amount of light.

Mitta dragged her hooves over to the window and stared out of it. Apple Bloom followed, but was unsure about the grey mare. Something also caught her attention, and that was the second bed. If Mitta lived alone, then why was there a second bed? That question formed in Apple Bloom's mind.

"Umm, Mitta? Why do ya have a second bed? Is there somepony else who sleeps here that Ah haven't-"

She was cut off by Mitta putting a hoof over her mouth and giving her a cold stare, which brought back the frightened feeling Apple Bloom felt earlier. Her eyes were like daggers shooting into Apple Bloom's face, but as quickly as they appeared, they softened down. Mitta retracted her head and sighed in a low tone.

"Sorry. That bed... belonged to my daughter."

Apple Bloom tilted her head. "Belonged?"

Mitta shook her head sadly. She faced the bed and walked toward it, putting a hoof on it. "Yes. She is no longer with me. She was murdered."

Apple Bloom gasped upon hearing the sudden news. If she was horrified earlier, she was devastated now. "What happened to her?" she asked.

"I'm going to tell you a story about my daughter, and the curse of Sunny Town. Get comfortable, because this is a long story."

Apple Bloom hesitantly nodded before walking toward the bed and jumped up onto it. Once she planted her rump onto the soft sheet, Mitta cleared her throat.

"About one hundred years ago, everything in Sunny Town was peaceful. Grey Hoof was always obsessed with his parties, Roneo was his natural goofball self, Starlet was as timid as ever, Gladstone was the ever so charming stallion, Three Leaf was the cheeriest pony around... all that sounds like today, doesn't it?"

Apple Bloom slowly nodded before Mitta shook her head in disagreement. "That's because they all tried to forget the past. I remember it perfectly, and it still haunts me today. The difference between then and now is that back then, I was actually happy. We also had one other pony living here..."

"Your daughter?" Apple Bloom asked, taking in all the information.

"Yes, her. Her name is Ruby. She has a grey coat like mine, and beautiful, orange hair with a yellow streak as well as gorgeous yellow eyes."

Apple Bloom's eyes widened. That exactly matched the description of the other pony she saw earlier in that second picture frame. That had to mean that the picture had to be taken about one hundred years ago since that was how long ago Mitta said Sunny Town was peaceful.

"She made you happy, didn't she?"

"She was my everything," Mitta answered while taking her hoof off the other bed. "I loved her dearly, and she was the number one thing that ever mattered to me. Of course, all the other ponies were my friends, but Ruby stood high above all else in importance to me. That bed you're sitting on was her bed."

"So that's why this bed's here," Apple Bloom replied after looking down at the bed.

"Back then, both of us were the happiest of ponies. I loved her as a daughter as much as she loved me as a mother. She used to always have fun with all of the others. Sometimes, she would bake stuff with Three Leaf, or listen to a story read by Starlet. She always enjoyed Grey Hoof's parties, too. That is, until the worst party to happen occurred..."

Apple Bloom was scared to even ask what happened to the poor filly that was Mitta's daughter. But she didn't have to, for Mitta opened her mouth to speak more.

"It was one day when Grey Hoof threw another one of his random parties. He does it every two weeks on Saturday. I was helping out Three Leaf with her garden. Back then, she was my best friend, but look at her now. A cruel monster, just like the rest of them."

Apple Bloom didn't have to be told that twice. She witnessed that nightmare already. Three Leaf was the first of those repulsive zombies she saw, and it was a mental image she would never forget.

"Anyway, while I was helping her, Roneo ran up to us, asking if either of us have seen a small ruby. It used to be his most prized possession, and it was also, what he calls, a good luck charm. He would always carry it with him wherever he went like it was his life force."

Apple Bloom didn't exactly have a prized possession of her own, unless the bow in her mane counted, but she could understand why anypony would love keeping something so close to them around all the time.

"I haven't really seen it, and neither did Three Leaf. Roneo started to panic, going around and turning everything topsy-turvy just to find it. Well, at least in his own home. Outside, he was just asking everypony if they have seen it. Even my daughter Ruby haven't seen it. She was just going around, acting like her cute self. Sometimes, she would walk up to Gladstone and ask him a few random questions, which he was always delighted to answer. But even he did not know where Roneo's ruby went."

While Mitta was explaining her story, Apple Bloom noticed another picture on the wall about two feet over Mitta's bed. It showed a picture of Mitta and Ruby sitting happily next to each other with Three Leaf posing in the background. It seemed Mitta liked to keep around things that reminded her of life before that fateful day.

"It wasn't until a few minutes later that my precious little Ruby came up to me, holding a beautiful ruby in her mouth. It turned out that was what Roneo had been looking for. I told her to give it to Roneo like a good filly should, so I began to follow her to Roneo's house. When we reached it, there he was sitting on his rump, picking at the grass on his front lawn like a depressed loner. You wouldn't believe how ecstatic he was when Ruby presented him with his gem, and she ran back to me with a smile with a cheery smile. Then, something happened..."

Apple Bloom returned her attention to Mitta, whose voice was uplifting for the past few minutes. The happy memories seemed to have distracted her from the earlier spookiness of the situation she was in before entering the room.

"I praised Ruby after helping out Roneo, and after we hugged, I noticed a small picture on her flanks. We looked at it closely to see that it had been a picture of a magnifying glass."

Apple Bloom's ears perked up suddenly. A small picture of a magnifying glass on her flanks only meant one thing.

"She got her cutie mark!" she shouted, which surprised Mitta to the point of making her jump a bit. Who could blame her? The room they were in was mostly quiet save for Mitta's voice, which wasn't very loud to begin with.

"She got what?" Mitta asked while she rubbed the sides of her head.

"Her cutie mark," Apple Bloom explained. "It's a mark a filly or colt gets on their flanks when they discover what makes them unique. Like, their special talent. It's somethin' Ah've been tryin' to get for a while now."

Mitta stared at Apple Bloom for a few seconds with her mouth agape as if she heard the most surprising thing. Apple Bloom raised an eyebrow when she saw Mitta hadn't answered her.

"Are you ok?"

"It's just that..." Mitta started, "that mark has been seen as a disease for a long time. A long time ago, our ancestors received many of these cutie marks before they all acted crazy. They all started doing things those marks represented. It was out of control."

Apple Bloom coughed to get Mitta's attention. "Cutie Pox. It's a disease alright, where a pony gets a lot of cutie marks out of nowhere and starts doin' those things. There is a cure, though."

"That's what it was?"

After Apple Bloom nodded to her question, she facehoofed, thinking just how stupid she and the rest of Sunny Town must've been for not realizing this mistake.

"If we had known that, my daughter would not have been lost... and this curse would not have befallen Sunny Town."

"What do ya mean?" Apple Bloom was now curious. She wanted to know what Mitta had actually meant by this curse she kept bringing up, though she had a pretty good idea what exactly she meant. She just didn't know how it was caused.

"After she received that mark... or, 'cutie mark' as you say, the other ponies saw it, and they thought she was going to fall under the influence of that disease. They wanted to get rid of her."

Apple Bloom gulped. She wasn't going to enjoy hearing what she was going to hear next.

"I tried to defend her, but the others were claiming that she was going to suffer the disease, and was going to spread it to the rest of us. What did they want to do? They wanted to banish her to the forest to fend for herself. She didn't want that, and neither did I. Unfortunately for us, none of us knew that this disease actually had a cure. I tried to tempt them to change their minds, but none of them were listening to reason. They still wanted her gone, just so they wouldn't get the disease themselves."

Apple Bloom was visibly shaking with fear again. Her teeth were bared against each other, and she had an expression of worry on her face. It was as if she was listening to a scary story, except that the story actually was real, and not just another made up tale.

"Just then, Ruby ran past everypony and they all gave chase. I tried to protect her, but I suddenly tripped on a small rock while they all ran past me. I didn't suffer any sort of bruising, but my front right leg had a bit of pain. Either way, I got up and kept going just to get to my Ruby. She eventually led them to the small shack at the back of the town."

Apple Bloom knew what shack Mitta was talking about. It was that same house she saw that pony skeleton in, just before Sunny Town became a shadow of its former self.

"When I got there, they all had my little Ruby cornered, telling her to leave and to never come back. She was just innocently shivering there in that corner, scared for her life. I faced Grey Hoof, and told him that we didn't have to do this... we didn't have to banish her anywhere. Perhaps there was more to that mark then what we heard about our ancestors."

"B-But there is more!"Apple Bloom retorted. "It's like Ah said, they are cutie marks. They represent a pony's special talent."

Mitta shook her head mournfully. "He just wouldn't listen. To make matters much more drastic, since neither I nor Ruby would listen to him, he ordered the others to... attack Ruby, and kill her. That way, the so called 'disease' wouldn't have a chance to spread."

Apple Bloom gasped very audibly. Mitta could hear it perfectly, but she anticipated it. Apple Bloom had never heard of any sort of case where a pony was killed, much less by the hooves of another pony.

"Before I could do anything, Roneo, Starlet, Gladstone, and even Three Leaf, started to pound down on my daughter... she screamed and yelled, telling them to stop over and over again, but they kept up their assault, no matter what. I begged them to stop, and even tried to interfere myself, but they ignored me and Grey Hoof kept me held back. He even went so far as to push me down to the floor."

Mitta lowered her head and bared her teeth. Apple Bloom could hear soft sobs coming from her as the grey mare shuddered in the memories. She was feeling rather sympathetic to this, and her heart suddenly felt like it was beating slightly slower than usual.

"After they stopped, she just laid there, but she looked horribly disfigured... some of her limbs were crushed or bent out of shape, and she was bruised all over. Both of her eyes were blackened, and her nose was bleeding profusely... she was whimpering in the corner in her greatly injured state... and I cried out to her as she was calling me..."

Apple Bloom slumped down on the mattress as she was hearing the story. This was too sad, depressing and heart-wrenching to listen to, and it was making her heart ache with melancholy.

"Right before my eyes, Grey Hoof looked down at Ruby, lifted up his hoof... and struck her hard on the head. I could hear nothing but a hard stomp and the fracturing of her skull. Then the room fell silent as we all stared at her now dead body. That last blow did her in..."

The more Mitta told of the story, the worse her voice got. She was visibly shuddering beside the bed in front of Apple Bloom. She didn't take bad news well, especially something as deep as this.

"I did nothing but cry my eyes out... how could they do this to Ruby, my daughter, my only child, my own flesh and blood? They even went so far as to think the disease could still spread, even if the body still stayed around, so they stuffed her body in the fireplace. After they left, I just... stood in front of the fireplace, watching as Ruby's body burned in the fire... after a while, I couldn't watch anymore, the tragedy of her murder... so I left toward home, and cried the rest of the day..."

The story was enough to bring Apple Bloom herself to tears. Nothing was worse than a filly with watery eyes. The depressing atmosphere soon shed on the room again, and left them in silence. A minute or two passed before Apple Bloom hopped off the bed and proceeded to wrap her arms around Mitta as much as she could. A hug couldn't really fix anything, but she hoped it could at least make the mare feel a bit better.

But Mitta merely separated herself from the filly, turning away from her. "Please, little filly... I just want to be alone right now..."

Apple Bloom was going to interject, but she decided against it, and simply turned her body away and dragged her hooves across the wooden floor toward the doorway.

"My name's Apple Bloom, by the way, Miss Mitta... Ah'll leave ya be," she spoke before leaving the room.


End file.
